Treasure Coast Vacations - Florida

Treasure Coast Highlights

For the most part, The Treasure Coast is an unspoiled, quiet destination favored by vacationers seeking respite from the hustle and bustle of city life. The "Treasure Coast" name relates to a fleet of Spanish treasure ships that sank off the coast of Hutchinson Island in 1715. As recently as the 1950's treasure from those original galleons was still being recovered from this region of central east Florida.

The miles of uninterrupted beaches and crystal clear waters south of Cocoa Beach and Melbourne Beach have always attracted swimmers, divers, anglers, and sun bathers.

The populations of the beach side beach towns appreciate the unhurried, small-town lifestyle, and those are exactly the reasons for the area's visitor appeal: laid-back lifestyle, unhurried tempo, relaxed atmosphere and economy prices.

Vero Beach and Sebastian

The Florida that pre-dates the tourist boom, high-rises and urban sprawl is alive and well in these towns. Vero Beach is home to an affluent winter population who come south to escape the harsh northern climate.

Sebastian is one of the last remaining fishing villages on the east coast and attracts surfers from all over the south east looking to ride the waves at Sebastian Inlet. 

The region is a popular destination for water sports enthusiasts. The wrecks of Spanish galleons in the Sebastian Inlet State Park makes this a favored spot for scuba diving and anglers have long known of the fine catches to be had in this area.

Port St. Lucie and Fort Pierce

These two Old Florida towns thrive on some of the best sport fishing in the USA. Fort Pierce has some excellent museums and offers easy access to Hutchison Island, a long, thin strip of land running parallel to the coastline.

Row after row of of piers line the Fort Pierce Inlet and Intracoastal Waterway, providing berths for the numerous vessels providing both river and ocean fishing. Visitors can also dive, snorkel and sunbathe and generally unwind in an area that has managed to avoid the high rise development so evident elsewhere in the beach front areas of Florida.

The best sightseeing is along the main beach road. Hutchinson Island has several beach clubs, some secluded residences, a few small inns and a small number of high-rise condominiums. The majority of the island is government owned and remains undeveloped in the public interest.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have their winter camp in Vero. Dodgertown is a 450 acre mini-town that not only includes the training camp, but has a whole range of services and facilities to support a residential community for baseball devotees. Afternoon exhibition games are played during the winter in the 6,500-seat outdoor stadium. 

The Savannahs Recreation Area is a 550-acre park in the Fort Pierce area with a similarity to the Everglades but on a small scale. Formerly a reservoir, it's now a natural wilderness with botanical gardens, trails, campsites and a petting zoo.  Another Fort Pierce favourite is the Manatee Observation Center at Indian River that is dedicated to educating the public on the plight of these gentle giants.

While sightings are not guaranteed, this is one of the locations where there is a better chance of observing the creatures in a natural habitat. For a complete change of pace there is the the UDT-SEAL Museum tracing the history of the specialist forces of the U.S. Navy frogmen and their successors, the SEAL teams.

The Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution is a functioning scientific institute studying ocean resources and accepts visitors on scheduled tours.

Highlights include submersibles used to conduct research at depths of up to 3,000 feet, and a Lagoon Wildlife Tour that examines the Indian River Lagoon. 

Treasure Coast Florida - Getting There & Getting Around

Arrival by air to the Treasure Coast is via Melbourne International Airport, 22 miles (35 km) south of Cocoa Beach. Flights are provided by Continental and Delta. Orlando International Airport is approximately 35 miles (57 km) to the west and has many more flight options with generally less expensive fares due to the competition. It's an easy 45-minute drive from the Orlando airport to the beaches via the Bee Line Expressway. 

The nearest Amtrak services are to the stations at DeLand and Okeechobee. A rental car is recommended in this area.